A Prayer For Happiness
by Chicken Yuki
Summary: After a usual morning rendezvous with his best friend, Sister Ariella, Mark finds himself alone at the altar with a personal wish of happiness in mind. For what does he pray for? And for whose sake?


_**Disclaimer: Harvest Moon is a property of Marvelous Interactive and Natsume. Not Natume or any other inconvenient misspelling. **_

_Consider this a Christmas Present for everyone who desperately wanted an Ariella/Alisa Fic in the Harvest Moon Section… or at least anyone who likes the sweet nun._

_Sorry, I ain't a Secret Santa for anyone. Regardless, Happy Holidays._

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**A Prayer for Happiness**

At the local altair of Sunshine Island, a young nun garbed in sky-blue robes knelt by the altar in deep prayer.

"Harvest Goddess, Great Mother of Life… please keep at bay the harshness of nature and allow our land prosperity. Continue to grant us peace…" she muttered solemenly.

Moments after her prayers finish, the entry doors creaked open. The devout follower turned her reddish-auburn hair to see a plucky capped man with blonde hair.

"Oh, Mark! What a pleasure to see you!" The nun called out with a pleasant voice.

"Morning, Ariella!" the young man cried back.

Mark casually walked into the church to meet with his good friend.

"I see you're all by yourself here again. I thought Father Nathan's supposed to be around her all the time, too." Mark noted.

"Oh, he usually he. There are just a few odd times when he's out and about. Like now, I suppose." Ariella explained with a shrug.

"Alright then, give my regards to Father Nathan if I don't see him today" Mark said with a shrug in return. He then set down his rucksack and started taking out something. "In the mean time, I'd like to hook you up with a morning treat. I think you'll REALLY like this one."

Though the curious Nun looked on patiently with her hands together by her chest, her knees were quivering in anticipation underneath her flowing robes.

Ever since she and Father Nathan set up church on the islands, the eager farmer had brought her quality sweats, which was a personal favorite of hers. Much of the quality came from the fact that they were freshly made, and it didn't hurt that the aspiring farmer was also an impeccable cook.

This time, Mark took out a Tupperware bowl, and handed it politely to Ariella. Upon touching it, the sweet-toothed maiden realized it was a little chilly.

"A cold dessert?" she suddenly realized.

Mark nodded with a grin.

"Ah, yeah! I overheard this was an uber favorite of yours, so I was really glad to finally make it for you!" he explained.

He then took off the top lid, revealing rich, creamy Neapolitan Ice cream.

"I-Ice cream? A-and in three flavors?" Ariella stuttered.

"I wasn't sure which was your favorite, so I decided to give you some options." Mark said with a shrug. "I mean, I remembered how much you liked the hot cocoa I've been giving you in the past, but I did this just in case. Maybe you had a thing for vanilla or strawberry instead."

The cheerful young lady reapplied the lid to the ice cream, then carefully set it aside before proceeding to grasp her friend in a big hug.

"Oh thank you, Mark! You're always so nice, but I didn't think you'd go this far for me!" she cheered.

"U-um… th-thanks." He merely replied with redness in his cheeks.

After Ariella finally let go, she picked up and held her new portion of ice cream.

"If you end up liking it, there'll be plenty more where that came from in the future!" Mark assured his friend.

"After what you've treated me to in the past, I have much faith this will taste wonderful. So you can be sure I'll look forward to more." Ariella replied with a giggle. "Sadly, having it right now might ruin my appetite for a more proper meal. If you'll please excuse, I'll have to preserve your special gift."

And with that said, the appeased nun left the altar room while humming a merry tune, leaving Mark by himself.

The farmer's formerly upbeat grin changed into an small, awkward smile with solemn eyes. In this new mood, he turned to the Altar with his hands in prayer.

"Great Harvest Goddess… I know we're not exactly meeting in person, but I have a feeling you can hear my wishes here, and… I'd just like to get something off of my chest." He muttered quietly.

The humbled Mark braced himself with a long, hard, sigh before he resumed his prayer.

"That woman earlier… your humble servant, Sister Ariella? She's a sweet woman, and a likeable person. She's been a really great friend because of it, and I'm certainly thankful that you helped bring her to me, but just maybe she's TOO likeable. I feel my heart pounding whenever I'm around her, among other things, and I have a feeling it's because I'm falling in love with her…"

At that point, Mark took a deep, anxious breath.

"Are these feelings wrong? I know she shouldn't be swayed from her sacred vows, but… I can't help it. If these feelings are so wrong, then I apologize. I'm very sorry that I ended up this way, but I don't know if I can ever really make it stop. If there were any way that she'd allow me to share a real relationship with her, then I'd accept it in a heartbeat, but I know she's committed to her faith… committed to you. As much as it pains me, I refuse to despise you for it. I want to respect her decision, and I chose to respect you. You've already given me so much during my stay on this island: New friends and family, many fine harvests, and an overall good life. I didn't even ask for these things, so I'm deeply grateful for it all, but… right now, I have one thing to ask of you with all my heart. Just this one thing: please protect Ariella with all your heart, and keep her happy. I can tell she's one of your best followers, and quite possible the kindest person anyone can hope to meet, so I really want her to have a long and satisfying life. She deserves it. Even if I can't be with her, this is all I can hope she could ever have. So Please…. Harvest Goddess…"

Suddenly, the lad in deep prayer heard a few footsteps behind him.

"Oh. So I see you decided to offer a prayer while I was out." Ariella's voice said aloud.

Mark quickly turned around to face his friend; his full vigor had returned to him at once.

"Yeah! I decided since I was here, I might as well." Mark grinned.

"May I ask what you decided to pray for?" Ariella asked.

"Something that means a lot to me, actually." Mark replied.

For a brief moment, the sweet Sister gazed curiously her dear friend before moving on with a soft smile.

"Well, whatever it is, with enough faith, I'm sure your prayer will be answered." She told Mark

"Oh, then in this case, I'm counting on it!" Mark answered with a light-hearted chuckle. "Heck, with a friend like you in good favor of the Harvest Goddess, my chances are looking much greater, huh?"

"I guess you're right!" Ariella giggled.

Once Mark realized the passage of time, he was quickly thrown into a panic.

"Oh, man! I promised I'd go fishing with Denny and Lanna real soon! I'm really sorry, but I have to go now!" Mark apologized. "I'm glad you liked my new gift."

"It's no problem," Ariella assured him, "We always have tomorrow to enjoy each other's company."

"Alright! It was good meet and chat like usual! Have a good day!" Mark cried before leaving the church.

"Good day to you, too! Thanks again for the ice cream!" Ariella cried back.

As soon as Mark was out of sight, the grateful Sister was left alone with a bittersweet smile.

"...and thank you for being so understanding…" she uttered ever so softly.

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_Ariella/Alisa…_

_She's the one girl out of the whole DS game I'd REALLY rather marry. Too bad she's a nun._

_Oh well, them's the breaks. _


End file.
